Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1887-08-27
CHAPTER XNXIV.
rANTA COETZEE To THE RESCUE

III al A-NAIf
TANTA CoETzEE To THE RESCUE.
After jess had been set free by the Beers
outside Hans Coetzee's place, John was
sharply ordered to dislnount and offsaddle
his horse This he did with the best grace
that he could muster, and the horse was knee
haltered aud let loose to feed It was then
indicated to him that he was to enter the
house, which he also did, closely attended by
two of the Beers.
Are you hungry, rooibaaje" asked one in
English.
John answered that he was
Tie his hands behind him. and let us see if
be can catch in his mouth, like dog sug-
geSted one of the gentle youths.
mo, no; make him eat pap with wooden
spoon. like Kaflir," said another. I will
feed him if you have a very long spoon"
Here again was legitimate cause for merri
ment, but in the end matters were compro-
missed by lump of biltong and piece of
bread being thrown to him from the other
end of the room. He caught them and pro
ceeded 10 eat, trying to conceal his ravenous
hunger as much as possible from the circle of
onlookers who clustered round to watch the
operation.
Suddenly one of the men remembered
backward off the horse and who was lying
very sick in the next room, and suggested that
measures of retaliation should be taken, which
would undoubtedly have been done had not
the elderly Boer who had commanded the
party interpoSed This man was getting
drunk like the others, but fortunately for
John he got amiahly drunk.
Let him alone" he said, "let him alone.
We win send him to the commandment to
morrow Frank Muller will know how TO
deal WITH him"
John thought to himself that he certainly
would
Now. for myself the man went on with
hiccough, Il bear no malice We have
thrashe,I the British and they have given up
the country, 50 let bygones be bygones, l
say. Almighty, yes l am not proud, not l.
If an Englishman takes off his hat to me
shall acknowledge it"
This STAYED the fellows off for a while, but
presently Johns protector went away, and
then the others began to get playful They
got their rifles and amused themselves with
leveling them at him, and making sham bets
as to where they would hit him John, see
ing the emergency, backed his chair well into
the corner Of the wall and drew his revolver,
which fortunately for himself he still had
If any man interferes with me- by God,
| I'll shoot him,' he said, in good English,
| which they did not fail to understand. I'm
doubteGlly as the evening went on it was only
the possession of this revolver and his evident
determination to use it that saved his life.
At list things got very bad indeed 50 bad
that he found it absolutely necessary to keep
his eyes continually fixed, now on one and
now on another to prevent their putting a
| bullet through him unawares. He had twice
appealed 10 the old woman, Hans Coetzee's
| wife, but she sat il her big chair with sweet
smile upon her fat face and refused to inter.
fere 1t is not every day that one gets the
chance of seeing real live English rooibaatje
| bated ike an ant bear on the fiat
Presently, Just as John in desperation was
making up his mind to begin shooting right
| and left the old woman, seeing that matters
were getting beyond a joke, came waddling
down the room with marvellous activity and
threw herself between them.
''Fhere there" she said cutting right and
left with her fat fists, 'fbe off with you
|
| here. Come, Off you all go, and get ths
| horses into the stable; they will be right away
| by morning if you trust them TO the Kaffirs
The woman. to Johns astonishment an,
relief, literally bundled the whole tribe o
them ont of the front door.
Now then, roobaatje," said the old lady
hrisklv, when they had gone, 81 like you be
cause you are a brave man, and were no
| afraid when they mobbed you. Also, don
want to have mess made upon my foo
here, or any noise or shooting. If those mel
come back and find you here they will frs
get rather drunken and then XIII you, so you
| had better he off while you get the chance,
and she pointed to the door.
Il really am much obliged to you, m
aunt" said John, utterly astonished.
"Oh as to that" she said dryly, ut woul
be a great pity to kill the last English roo
baatie in the whole British army; they ough
| to keep YOU as a curiosity. Here, take to
of brandy before you go, it is a wet night
and sometimes when you are clear of tn
1ransvaal and remember this business, IT
member, too, that you owe your life to Tant
Coetzee. But would not have saved yol
not l, if you had not been 50 plucky. Xix
| a man TO be a man inefe, De OH
John poured out and gulped down half
tumblerful of the brandy, and in another INC
ment was outside the house and had slippe
off into the night, 1t was very dark an
wet, for the rain clouds had covered up til
moon, and he soon realized that any atten1r
to look for his horse wouldonly end in failur
and in his recapture also. The only thing t
do was to get away on foot in the directio
of Mooifontein as quickly as he could; so Of
he went down the track across the veldt q
hard as his stiff legs would take him. II
had a ten miles trudge before him, and wit
that cheerful acquiescence in circumstance
over which he had no control which was on
) of his characteristics, he set to work to max
the best of it. For the first hour or so a
: went well, and then to his intense disgust
| discovered that he was off the track fat
at which anybody who has ever had I'll
: pleasure on a dark night of wandering alon
so called road on the African veldt wi
: scarcely be surprised. After wasting qua
: ter of an hour or more in vain attempt
t find the path, he struck out boldly for dai
S looking mass that doomed in the distanc
> and which he took to be Mooifontein hi